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Richard Iii Essay

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Why did Richard III face opposition during his short reign?

Even before Richard III claimed the throne, he was already in the black books of the public and nobles for being accused of murdering the two princes in the tower. With rumours quickly spreading of his alleged murder, many Yorkist nobles and servants who were loyal to Edward IV and his sons were strongly against Richard III’s appointment as the King of England. This resulted in a constant revolt by rebellions organized by Yorkists. Buckingham who was a close ally to Richard III was denied a reward that Richard III had promised. Offended by this, Buckingham took part in the rebellion later on. As a result, the rebellion was known as the ‘Duke of Buckingham’s Rebellion’. But this was inaccurate because he did not lead the rebellion nor did he organize it. The cause of Buckingham’s rebellion was clearly due to Richard III’s powerlessness in the political aspect of his reign. He failed to grasp hold of his own Yorkist members and did so by being held responsible for the princes’ death.

Subsequently, he faced the prospects of losing his throne to the up and coming Henry Tudor who was a Lancastrian with the backing of Buckingham and several Yorkist nobles to be King. Henry Tudor was a well known contender for the throne and was in fact planned by Richard III to be murdered but it was either Richard III’s fate or luck that made Henry Tudor slip away from him. But a much more evident reason is that Henry Tudor was the least of his concern. For the reason that immediately after putting Buckingham on trial and ending the revolt by rebels, he turned his attention towards the war against Scotland. He injected high funds into the campaign to go all out and win the war despite James III of Scotland’s desire for peace. It was undoubtedly unnecessary but for Richard III it was a mere opportunity to prove his credentials to the public and regain their support. But that could only be done if he wins the war....